5X16 - Mind's Eye [REVISITED]

Summary

Despite the almost prickly and definitely lukewarm interaction between our heroes in this one — brought on by Mulder's very characteristic interest in the underdog female (who really isn't in this case) — I find this one interesting and a good one to watch every now and again. Lili Taylor did a great job with her part, totally convincing me that Marty could exist with such hard and soft edges all at once. She's perfectly realistic that way. This one was very reminiscent of Oubliette, with the same steadfast belief coming from Mulder that "she's innocent" and the same lack of interest from Scully. Interestingly enough, there was also that same idea of an unwanted connection between the hard luck female characters and the ultimate "bad guys". Despite the similarities, from an x-file standpoint, I liked it.

What the hell does Mulder have
against the Ice Capades??

I don't have a whole lot to add to the analysis of this ep; I really just wanted to see it again. When the credits rolled, my only thought was, I hope she didn't get a long sentence. While a case can be made that Marty intended to kill Gotts, it doesn't take away the fact that Gotts had the same intention towards her — and he's the one with the recent murder record.

My other half and I recently had a discussion regarding what sense we would prefer to be deprived of if given a choice. Neither one of us wanted to be without sight; that's definitely a hard one. However, for someone who never had sight to begin with, I suppose it's a different consideration and we should not be surprised that Marty is so independent. I wonder... in the scene where she sees someone (herself) being escorted through the police station parking lot, what was she thinking? Did she know immediately that she was seeing herself? And if so, how did she know, considering that she's never seen herself before?

[By the way, compare Marty to Karen from Schizogeny and you get a good idea of what is required to draw sympathy and interest from the viewing audience. Marty was dealt a subpar hand from birth, but we get the feeling that she at least tries to prevail, survive, and be a good person.]

It's been said that Mulder made some pretty impressive leaps in this one. I suppose, in the context of the series, there is precedent for him doing so every now and again.

Best or Worst Moment

Face it, we like her spunkiness, but sometimes all those hard edges are sharp and cutting. So therefore, the end scene where Mulder comes to visit Marty in her cell is my choice for best moment, simply because she is a lot more pleasant here. I like that I'm able to understand what she feels — that the simple pleasures in life (such as seeing the ocean) do a lot to make up for the bad stuff.

Original Rating: * * *
Revised Rating: * * *